Prime Minister and the Cabinet

1
Prime Minister and the Cabinet

• PM key figure in political system,
• However no consensus on the precise nature of the
  PMs power
• Controversy about whether the expansion of the
  PMs power has now effectively displaced cabinet
  government

2
death of cabinet government lament Brady, 1999

• Functions of government have grown dramatically,
  the PM as head of executive has shared in
  increase of power
• Attention has been drawn to growth of PMs
  authority over cabinet
• Summons, Chairs meetings, sets the agenda, sums
  up mood, approves minutes
• Collective responsibility
• Existence of inner cabinet

3
Examples

• Blair often bypasses cabinet relying on own
  policy unit and advisors e.g. previously Alastair
  Campbell now Dave Hill, Jonathon Powell
• Increase in chairing cabinet committees
• Reduction of meetings
• Sofa style government

4
However

• Convention dictates certain items will appear
  regularly on cabinet agenda
• The Cabinet office advises the gov. on the
  implementation of policy at times this may
  obstruct policies
• The cabinet will offer advice and opinion at full
  cabinet meetings on gov. policy
• Needs Cabinet approval for controversial measures
  therefore PM needs Cabinet support

5
Examples

• Even Thatcher was vulnerable she failed to
  recognise limits of her power and that she needed
  to work with cabinet-challenged for leadership
• The cabinet system was more centralised and
  personalised, formal structure was downgraded

6
Examples

• There was important differences in Majors
  approach- cabinet became a forum for more general
  discussion- used more extensively
• Less focused solely on PM although tendency to
  rely on inner group

7
Party leader and at very least 1st among equals

• Can hire, fire, reshuffle Cabinet, ministers
  parliamentary private secretaries, chairmen-
  powers of patronage
• Decides who does what
• For example, Charles Clarke sacked and replaced
  with John Reid, Jack Straw demoted to leader of
  the Commons and replaced with Margaret Beckett
  John Prescott remained as deputy Prime Minister
  but lost his portfolio

8
However

• Seniority of colleagues demands their inclusion
  and sometimes in certain posts e.g. Brown- rival
• John Prescott to appease left of the party
• Experience, talent

9
The PM has a key role in economic and foreign
policy

• Blair accused of backing Bush without cabinet
  support
• Blair very involved in health, education
• PM given credit when a policy goes well e.g. The
  New Deal, good employment, low inflation

10
The PM has a key role in economic and foreign
policy

• However no leader can do things on their own-
  they rely on a number of top colleagues
• Minsters responsible for day to day decisions,
  strategy, may make proposals for legislation
• winning managers are difficult to remove but many
  are just waiting for them to start losing

11
Overall

• Blair can be said to dominate his government and
  the control freak charges have been highlighted
  by the image that as a leader he has an
  ambivalent attitude to power and is terrified of
  genuine debate

12
Overall

• However it can be argued that this is the image
  that Blair wishes to project
• An image in which dissent is not tolerated
• we must not confuse strong leadership with
  obsessive control from the centre

13
overall

• The voice of the PM in cabinet may be the most
  important, but his power is essentially political
  and contingent on the success of the team of
  ministers who have their own power bases

14

• Homework
• Discuss the relationship between the Prime
  Minister and the cabinet (1994 LO2)